In a recent attempt to get an inspection sticker for my 2001 GMC Jimmy, I was told that I need to replace my left front lower ball joint in order to get the sticker. I see that ball joints are relatively cheap, between $15-30 dollars, but are they difficult to install myself? I'm not a mechanic, but would like to keep my costs down, if possible, without forfeiting safety, of course. If anyone could give step-by-step instructions on how to do this, I would greatly appreciate it! Please let me know. Thanks very much!
Is this a 4 wd drive unit or 2wd unit? are you mechanically inclined and have basic common tools including a jack and jackstands? if you live close to pep-boys auto center then you can take it there you will spend about 200-300 to do the job, just ask them for a qoute first and that hopefully is still free. they have a special coupon on there wbsite right now that will save you some money, plus if you are over 55 or student in school you can also save money there. i was a service manager there for a while... let me know what you want to do they are not super hard to do but can give you a headache if you dont have a grinder or chisel. i can walk you through it though if you still wish, im all for the do it yourselfer.
do you own a chilton or haynes manual for this vehicle? if not you can purchase for less then 20 bucks at local auto parts store. there are pictures in those they're are pretty eash to follow. this job should take you about 3-4 hours assuming you dont have an air compressor and air tools if you do then cut that in half. you will need a pickle fork " a fork shaped joint separtion tool" , a small sledge hammer 2-3lbs will help but a regular hammer will work. breaker bar of some sort i use the jack handle for this. to get the coil spring out i normally use the jack and lower ever so slowly, this is the only scary part, that spring is under enough pressure to take an arm off so be very careful to situate the jack just right under the lower control arm.you can rent a coil spring tool from auto parts store and that is usually the safest way to do it. lets get this far and then will make sure we have all the tools right there to do the job. then we'll go from there, let me know and ill get you through it.
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HI, btessereau. Thanks for the reply. The vehicle is a 4wd. I am a bit
mechanically inclined, in that I have common sense to figure things out
when I apply logic, if that makes any sense. I do not have many auto
tools, but do have access to everything I would need, as long as I know
what I would need ahead of time. So I guess with step-by-step guidance
or walk-through (and plenty of pictures- haha), I should be able to
swing it on my own. Thanks again for all your help!
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